The thing that connecting the telephone handset and the telephone set is called spiral cord. Spiral cord is also known as curly cord.

Do you know why the so called ‘cord’ must be spiral? Couldn’t it be straight like a line cord?

When the telephone was invented and widely used, the ‘spiral cord’ was actually straight. But in the 1950s, telephone companies start using spiral type.

The reasons are:

• The spiral telephone wire is relative longer compared to straight type
• More convenient to pick up the phone
• More practical because spiral cords ensure that the cable does not snap back once you run to the end of the line. The spiral shape allowing the cord/wire to stretch and shrink
• Better signal reception (the spiral design allows the signal to transmit smoothly).

And what to do when your spiral cord got tangle?

First, hold your handset in the air. And then, let the headset hang, but be careful, don’t hit the floor. By doing this, the cord will spin and untwist itself. Look carefully during the process so that when it is untangled, you quickly stop the twisting, or else your spiral cord will get “over-twist”.